Category: Peru

This week Ailsa theme challenges us with travel merchandise and Kongo immediately thought of all the junk, uh…I mean of course souvenirs hand crafted by indigenous artisans in local villages high in the Andes…that he came across during a recent trip to Peru and Machu Pichu. The markets were teeming with all kinds of stuff like the cloth and dolls above and the bull below which is a symbol of fertility in the Andes mountains. Advertisements

You expect to see a lot of llamas in Peru. Nothing extra about that. But a BLUE-eyed llama. Well now, that’s something extra. In fact, Kongo had to pay a little bit extra “propina” because of the baby-blue-eyed llama in the red hat. This week’s photo challenge is to submit a photo with that little something extra. Like blue eyes on a llama. Read on to see a close up of this unusual animal.

The “Sacred Valley” in Peru stretches from the lower foothills outside Cusco to the old Inca fortress town at Ollantaytambo and is defined by the Urubamba River, one of the headwaters of the Amazon. Kongo visited this beautiful valley in late April and lived to tell the tale.

While visiting Cusco, Peru a few weeks ago Kongo wanted to get some night shots of the Plaza de Armas in the center of the old city. This was going to be a bit of a trick because there are lots of people on the square who want to sell you souvenirs you don’t want, shine your shoes, or pick your pockets.

Other than Machu Picchu, one of the big reasons Kongo wanted to visit Peru was to have a chance to capture some of the beautiful people that he has seen in other photographs. There is something quite magical about the faces of the Peruvian people.

Kongo made this panorama image from three shots taken yesterday morning from a perch high above the ancient city near a stone building known as the Caretaker Hut. While there he met some Canadians who were relaxing at the site after spending several weeks in remote areas of Peru installing solar panels in villages that have never had electricity before.